Security At Your Front Door
It may be surprising to hear this, but it’s a fact: in most home invasions and robberies, burglars enter homes by the front or back door. They want fast access to your home, and usually, the front door affords them that. Here are10 things you can do to be sure that your front door doesn’t become an easy entryway for potential intruders.
- 1. Do not open the door. This may seem obvious, but it’s actually not uncommon for people to simply open their door and let a stranger inside. The person may be innocuous (and probably is), but there’s always the possibility that you’d be opening the door to trouble. Once someone is in your home, it can be that much more difficult for you to get help. In fact, just opening the door a little might be trouble, even if you’re using a security chain. Many of those chains—even those that are heavy-gauge–can be cut in just an instant.
- 2. Have your LifeShield keychain remote in your hand. That way, if something does happen and you get in trouble, all you have to do is press the panic button to immediately notify Monitoring Center.
- 3. Install a front door peephole. This will make it easier for you to know who’s at your door when there’s a knock.
- 4. Reinforce your door. Replace your door’s strike plates with heavy-gauge plates that have long screws. You can have a professional do this, but it’s not difficult to do yourself. These plates make it a lot more difficult for an intruder to kick in your door or pry it down.
- 5. Keep your porch well-lighted. That way, you’ll be able to look out at dusk or at night and clearly see who’s standing there.
- 6. Insist on ID. First, see if there’s a vehicle with a corporate logo parked out front. Next, ask the person for an ID badge, and have them put it through the mail slot. Finally, call the company and double-check their identity. Usually, the company receptionist will have access to the employee directory and will be able to give you this information.
- 7. Never just ignore a knock. When someone unexpected knocks at your door, it’s always better to respond than to say nothing. Generally, burglars are focused on robbery and aren’t anxious to confront a home’s resident, so if you’re quiet, they might conclude there’s no one home and decide to target you. But if you just call out, “It’s not a good time,” that can be enough to keep the person moving on.
- 8. Don’t let your guard down. Things always seem a lot less menacing when the sun’s shining, and it’s easy to get lulled into a false sense of safety. Actually, statistics show that most home invasions occur during daylight hours. It’s good to always stay vigilant, no matter what time it is.
- 9. Let Molly bark. Sure, barking can seem like bad dog manners, but it’s actually good security advice. Again, burglars are interested in an easy profit and not in a loud, nasty confrontation with your pup. That’s true no matter how big or small the dog is.
10. Use your signs. Posting your LifeShield sign in a prominent place in the front of your home and then displaying one of the LifeShield stickers near your home’s entryway can be a very effective crime deterrent. Like your dog barking, these signs are an indicator that targeting your home may be a lot more trouble than it’s worth.
